Hand and Labour
by Sheffield93
Summary: Beckett breaks Castle's hand during labour
1. Pain

This is a quick 2 shot based of a prompt on Tumblr:_ Beckett breaks Castle's hand during labour_. I went with finger.

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**Chapter 1: Pain**

He knew his wife was strong but this was on a whole new level. She was breaking his hand, granted she was in labour which is probably the most painful natural experience there is. He used to believe it, for him at least, was getting kicked where the sun doesn't shine. Now though any life that was remaining in his hand was surely dwindling. He had being trying to avoid asking her but their child was clearly as stubborn as their mother, deciding to make this labour as long as possible. She was already in the eighteenth hour and even he could see that she couldn't last much longer.

They were aware this was going to be a big baby and all she could think right now is that it was tearing her to shreds. Her downstairs area was never going to be the same again.

Next break between contractions is when he begged her, "Kate, I love you and I know that this is really hard but could you please ease the pressure on my hand?"

"CASTLE" Kate screamed in agony as the next contraction hit. She squeezed his hand even harder and he was sure that he felt a bone break, his little finger on his right hand. He yelped in agony too, which had the odd nurse or so looking at him.

"The head is crowning." The doctor told Kate. As if she wouldn't be able to feel it. Hell she had gone through the whole labour with no medication. Just a few more pushes and maybe his hand will just remain with one finger broken.

The moment their screaming baby is placed in her arms he lets out a sigh of relief. Just the one finger broken but she is happy for now, he'll ask a nurse to look at it while he is able to without Kate overhearing. When he goes to cut the cord he sees the tears on her eyes, he'll not ruin this moment. Judging by the cries their son is making, he has a hell of a set of lungs.

Ah, Kate tells him to go with their son while she delivers the placenta. Part of him wants it to take a while but most of him not. She's had enough and deserves some time.

As one nurse has just finished with their son, leaving another one to complete he asks her if she can check his finger.

"Well, Mister Castle, your wife is an incredible woman. She even managed to break a bone. It's not a bad break so we can just buddy tape it. Just a word of warning, don't moan about it in front of her." The nurse told him before tapping him up.

Maybe in a few years they would look back and joke about it. Given the current look on her face it might be many, many years or never.

Three hours later though, he had already failed to heed the nurse's advice.

"Kate, you broke my finger."

"Oh, my bad." Not. "Castle, I just pushed an eight pound eleven baby out of me with the biggest head the midwife has seen in years, you have no sympathy from me right now."

"But Kate-" the glare she gives him makes him stop before he goes any further.

She's made her mind up, as soon as she can she will sign him up for the experience which men can be shown how labour feels. She'll pay whatever and will film it just to show him what a wuss he's being over a sodding broken finger.

She's got stitches because the baby managed to tear her. But they now have a son, with a head as big as his father's. She wants a girl next...what...wait, where did that come from?

She's just glad for now the nurses have left her alone for now and there's nobody poking her down _there_ anymore she needs a rest and is determined to get a snooze.

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Next chapter will be up tomorrow hopefully.

Thanks for reading.

**Tumblr: Sheffield93**


	2. Your Turn

Note the genre humour. This is meant to be lighthearted and funny. I can only imagine what it is like to go through in real life and I didn't mean to belittle either man or woman.

For those who liked it, thank you for the favourites, follows &amp; reviews. I like to hear feedback.

FYI, I don't know that they do this in NYC but I saw this 'experience' on the news years ago and then had this idea to add to Ch1 which was the prompt.

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**Chapter 2: Your Turn**

She promised herself that she would do it, originally it was during labour when she was irritated by her husband moaning that she had broken his hand and since then she's been a bit busy. Now though, their little family have settled into a routine she's got around to it.

She's been searching for well over an hour now for somewhere in New York that will do this kind of thing. If it's a good laugh for her then she'll tell Jenny about it. Maybe even get Esposito to go at the same time too. That would be funny.

Whoever invented this experience must have been a woman who wanted to show her husband what it felt like. The machine that will help simulate labour for men. She looked at some more YouTube videos of it and found the reaction of the men hilarious. She won't tell him beforehand because he'll do _everything_ to get out of it.

Two weeks later, having dropped their son with Alexis for a few hours, they arrived at the centre; Castle still unaware of her surprise. She told Alexis about it who wanted a picture, at least, of her father.

"Kate, what is this place?" Castle asked as they stood outside the entrance.

"You remember how you moaned about me breaking your finger when I was in labour well I thought that you needed to experience what I went through."

"What?" He asked with the panic rising in his voice.

"There's an experience for men, who through shocks can feel what contractions are like." Okay, so women could do it as well but it was mainly men.

"You didn't?"

"Oh yes I did." Kate said with a smile, which was the complete opposite of Castle's expression.

"Kate, please, no, I will-" He begins to beg.

"No, Castle, there's nothing you can say to get out of this." Her mind was made up, it was booked and they were there now so he was going through with it.

Twenty minutes later or rather two minutes into the experience…

"Gah, please make it stop. I will never never moan or complain about it ever again." He pleads, grasping in agony.

"Sorry, Castle, mandatory half an hour experience." She says nodding to the woman operating the machine.

"She's right, Mister Castle, you will now fully appreciate what your wife and all women go through bringing life into this world." The operator inputs, okay it wasn't mandatory but as long as there are no health issues then Kate made sure that he continued.

After the so called experience, or as Castle said 'pure hell', they were walking back to their car parked around the corner with Castle still awkwardly walking.

"You know, we don't have to have another child." He told his wife.

"Castle, I grew up an only child and I know there's Alexis but I want our son to have a sibling their own age."

"You're willing to go through, THAT, again?" He exclaimed, now aware of the pain he had much more sympathy than before. It still baffled him that God would make it such a painful and long lasting experience.

"Castle, you had that for half an hour, I had eighteen hours of it and had to push our child's head out of a hole that's usually the size of...well you know."

"Just promise not to break more than one finger." He requests, but in reality he knew that she couldn't make that promise.

"No promises, Castle." She said gleefully, she didn't mean to last time and part of her actually felt sorry for him. She apologised in time but still…

"Oh hell." He mutters "Could you have the epidural next time?"

"No. I did it last time without so don't need to next time."

"Well can I at least have something for the pain?" He jokes, sort of anyway.

She doesn't justify his ridiculous question with an answer just a glare which gives the silent answer of "you've got to be kidding me"

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When the test comes up positive less than a year later, with both of them having sat for the three minutes hoping for that answer, she turns to say "I promise to try to not break your fingers but that doesn't mean I won't, babe." She plants a kiss to his temple before dragging him to their room for a celebration.

Eight months later after a gruelling twelve hour labour bringing their daughter into the world, he's glad to find his fingers and hands are intact. Phew.

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Thank you for reading.


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